#if there are any errors in this im sorry and im also sorry that i dont care X(

[casualavocados]

I want you to tell me the truth in person, or I'll burn your mouth with chilies!

AI DI, our 小辣椒 (little chili padi)🌶️🎉 KISEKI: DEAR TO ME Bonus: Cayenne Auto Shop

[marblerose-rue]

basking in moonlight

[cluelessbees]

Yknow what ? I think Byler getting Murray’d would be more heartfelt than anything else.

Because like-

Murray doesn’t just call out Jopper and Jancy because it’s obvious. He points it out because he knows they’re being stupid. In their cases, it’s really just them not communicating their feelings to one another and trying to pretend they don’t exist.

But with Byler it’s like…it’s different.

Because it’s not just that is it? We’re not just watching two people pine over one another whilst being oblivious to the fact they other likes them back. We’re not just looking at two people who can’t communicate well. There’s more to it.

Because they’re two boys who have been best friends since childhood. They grew up at the peak of the AIDS epidemic. They live in a small town and they’re expected to act a certain way. It’s different for them.

I don’t think Murray is gonna waltz in acting all holier than thou and essentially out both Mike and Will to one another. He’s a smart man as we’ve seen. He’s attentive. He doesn’t just call jancy and jopper out to prove a point he knows what they both need to hear so they can get over their miscommunication hurdle.

I think he’s going to go up to them. Either both or just Mike or Will or whatever, and he’s going to talk to them about it. Because that’s what they need. They need someone to talk to them about it. And I don’t think he would start with just directly talking about it. I think he (and this is me headcanonning Murray as queer) would open up first. Like about his own experiences- to show them that he gets it, and he knows what it’s like. And then he would casually bring up the whole byler thing.

Hmmm something along the lines of...

Okay– picture a conflict Mike Wheeler sitting by himself – either on the couch or on the floor or whatever. And, he’s stuck in his head. A lot had happened. He broke up with El and he’s struggling to grasp what he’s feeling about his best friend. And there's this…weird tension between them that– he just– he can't put his finger on. But they’re off. They aren’t clicking like they used to and Mike can’t seem to fix things. 

So he sat alone, trying to understand or comprehend whatever he’s feeling whilst everyone else is god knows where in the house. Will was in the kitchen though. Mike knew that much. And then suddenly, he felt a weight on the couch seat next to him or the space on the floor beside him was no longer there and he heard the words of Murray Bauman pull him out of his thoughts with the weirdest fucking ice-breaker he has ever heard.

“Y’know…I was like you when I was younger.” 

“Really?” Mike asked – mostly out of disbelief as he scanned Murray. No way. Not a chance. 

“Oh yeah…” Murray smiled, nodding to himself as he continued. “I know it's hard to believe it, but I was this…brash, stubborn, reactive teen who loved going against authority. I was very...headstrong in my beliefs.” 

He paused and Mike turned to him. Murray had his head down, looking at his lap silently, and Mike didn’t know what to do but watch or…more– listen to the silence. 

“And…I was also in my head a lot.” Murray looked up, turning to Mike once before looking forward again. “I was angry at things – at people and at myself because…no matter how much I pretended like I loved being a freak…a part of me hated that I wasn’t normal…”

Mike felt cold. His heartbeat raced as he turned away from Murray – facing forward and staring at his lap as he continued to listen.

“Yeah?”

“Oh yeah…I was-- going through a lot of stuff internally that I tried pretending didn’t exist.” He paused again – taking a deep breath. “I was…in love with someone who I didn’t want to be in love with.”

“...You were?” 

“Yeah…” Murray laughed to himself. “Yeah…it was– well he was…my best friend.”

Mike held his breath.

“I fell for him. And I was mad at myself for falling for him. Because even though I knew it wasn’t wrong…I just kept thinking about how I wasn’t supposed to like him. Because that’s not normal– Well ‘normal.’” Murray airquoted, rolling his eyes. Mike’s eyes were glued onto him at this point. 

“So…I grew angrier. And I took it out on myself. On him. Even though he didn’t deserve it. Even though I loved him– I just..I let my fear get the better of me and I pushed him away until I lost him…And I hated myself for doing that.” He breathed, another pause, before finally turning to Mike. “It took me a long time to realise that there was nothing wrong about loving someone.”

Murray tilted his head towards the direction of the kitchen as he raised his eyebrows – and it clicked to Mike.

“I..” Mike’s throat felt dry. “You know?”

“I had a hunch.”

“Is it obvious? Does he–”

“No, he doesn’t know. Your secret's safe with me, kid.”

“Okay– good.” Mike paced his breathing. “I just…I– I can’t lose him because of this. If he knew– if– if he knew he would–”

“He’s your best friend right?” Murray cut him off.

“What? Yes but–”

“Then. he could never hate you, Mike. Not about this.”

“How do you know that?”

“Call it…another one of my hunches.” Mike knitted his brows together.

“Look – kid, I’m not going to force you to tell him or anything. It's your choice at the end of the day. And I can’t say much, but it doesn’t take a genius to know how much that boy cares about you. And you care about him, correct?”

Mike nodded. 

“And you trust him?”

Mike nodded again. “With my life.”

“So…all I can say is…if you trust him? Then...trust him with this.” Murray began to stand up. “Take it from me. Holding it in only hurts the both of you.”

And then Murray leaves

Anyways yeah thoughts––

[rexwrendraws]

Sandcastles: Year One, A Sandman Fan-Fic Anthology ⏳

To celebrate The Sandman's one year anniversary this past weekend (how has it been a year already!?), I started a self-indulgent project and decided I wanted to take a crack at typesetting for the very first time.

So, I'm very proud to present: Sandcastles, an 180-page digital anthology that celebrates some of my favorite Sandman fics from the past year! Sandcastle collects shorter fics ranging from gen to mature, and is print-ready and available to be downloaded for free. Through this anthology, I hope others can get the same joy from these fics the same way I did over the past year (think of it as a glorified fic rec list)! (And, if anyone's interested, the print-ready files are available for download as well, if anyone wanted to print their own copy of Sandcastles!)

✨ Download Sandcastles here!

Thank you to all the authors for giving me permission to include their work in this anthology! This is my love letter to all of your work! Please check them out and leave a kind word or two!

The fics included in Sandcastles, in order of the Table of Contents, are the following:

Companions - Picture_Yourself (@anthrossandman)

Fridays - hardly_an_escape (@hardly-an-escape)

Warning Sign - issylra (@issylra)

Snacktime - fishydwarrows (@fishfingersandscarves)

Stray - softestpunk (@softest-punk)

Aulon Raid - moorishflower (@moorishflower)

Unbidden Miracles - mostlybuddingthoughts (@mostlybuddingthoughts)

Available - softestpunk (@softest-punk)

Points of View - cuubism (@cuubism)

Fern-Fevered - notallsandmen (notallmaenads) (@notallsandmen)

The Last - secondjulia (@secondjulia)

Scratch a Little Itch - sanyumi (@valeriianz)

Simple Dreams of Comfort - softestpunk (@softest-punk)

The Apocalypse is Nigh! - cuubism (@cuubism)

To Those Who Dare Wonder - Astrophel_Hireath (@mentallyinvernation)

The Perils of Inebriation - Lilibet (@the-slow-arrow)

Touch - softestpunk (@softest-punk)

Passing the Time - Anonymous

I'm Stuck on You (I'm Mighty Glad You Stayed) - hardly_an_escape (@hardly-an-escape)

Hob Gadling vs. The British Museum (Unknown Artist, c. 2022, Oil on Canvas) - TheAllKnowingOwl (@theallknowingowl)

This also counts as my submission for Day 1 of @mr-sadman 's Sandmanniversary 2023 prompts (Collection) :)

_ _ _ _ _ (Post & files updated — 29.08.2023)

[azu1as]

dumb rotmhs fanfic idea: one hundred years after his death, tang bo reincarnates as the son of a wealthy merchant family in shaolin.

—basically, a tangcheong reincarnation ficlet set during the shaolin tournament arc 👍

»—————————–✄

Part 1 2 3

the zheng family was the leader of a wealthy merchant guild in shaolin. while they were not on the same level as the hwang, they were still influential enough for rumors to run amok.

And rumors always circled their eldest son.

zheng bo was as much of an enigma to his family as he was to those within their village. he had always been a quiet child but, one day, something happened that /changed/ the then five-year old.

the zheng family's son cried tears upon tears. he was absolutely inconsolable. his small body shook, overcome with emotions so heavy that his entire body was painfully heaving.

and when he woke up, eyes bloodshot and distant, it was as if the childhood spark in his eyes disappeared along with his tears the previous night.

off-handedly, his father noted the history book that was dropped haphazardly on the floor. several of its pages were scrunched up terribly.

the zheng partiarch mistook it as his son's desire to learn martial arts, but quickly learned the opposite as his son glared at the instructor with so much vitriol it was poisonous.

no matter how many instructors he sent his son's way, he all turned them back—uncaring whether they were decades-long martial artists, instructors of renowned ones, or teachers from the shaolin sect itself. if anything the latter worsened zheng bo's mood to the nth degree.

ashamedly and with deep regret, both the zheng patriarch and matriarch had to give up on their son as they realized the teaching him how to inherit their merchant guild was a futile endeavor. zheng bo would rather stay cooped up in his room in complete silence.

the zheng family had three more children after their eldest yet none of their births affected the dark veil of mourning that shadowed their eldest brother.

A veil that no one could ever seem to lift.

other families often asked after him, most in hopes of marrying off their daughters, but the zheng matriarch stiffly laughed them off.

they had tried once to set a play date with another merchant family's daughter, but it ended up with her in tears and vomiting with an upset stomach. the same occured with the next and third ones.

they catch zheng bo slip a vial with an unknown substance back into his sleeve and understood the lengths he would go to avoid such a thing from happening again.

many years go by and their second son inherited their family's merchant guild, much to the confusion of many.

it stirred up interest in zheng bo. rumors went around about his inability to perform his duties as the eldest son; some said that he was actually a bastard which was why he was overlooked.

former servants and workers from the zheng family whispered about the eldest son's madness and how his mania could not be cured by even the best of doctors and healers.

but as with all rumors and public interest, it died down when no new information sprung forth.

zheng bo was simply a crazy son who was better kept within the walls of the zheng estate than be let out for fear of what his madness would lead him to do.

when the shaolin tournament began with warriors and fighters from the ten great sects and other notable families, the zheng patriarch tried to urge zheng bo to attend and simply watch the battles with the rest of the family.

zheng bo scoffed at him.

their second son placed a comforting hand on his father's shoulders and suggested that they just let him be, "the winner has already been decided. i'm sure eldest brother would end up bored."

but the world had a funny sense of irony.

mount hua was the competition's dark horse. they were nigh unstoppable, flicking away their opponent's swords with absolute ease and twisiting around them as if they were falling petals themselves. it was an unexpected but amazing start to the competition.

as the finals approached, discussion about the upcoming fight between mount hua's divine dragon and shaolin's hye yeon run rampant outside of shaolin's walls. inside the zheng estate, no one could stop talking about the unexpected showing from what should have been a fallen sect.

tang bo, by chance, overheard the praises heeped on mount hua's divine dragon who had beaten everyone he had faced undeniably and soundly.

a part of him felt guilty that he had been too overwhelmed by his own grief and pain to even step out and check on his family and hyung's sect—especially after what he had learned about the aftermath of the battle against the demonic sect one hundred year ago.

so felt a strong wave of relief at the knowledge that mount hua had regained its footing somehow and that it was doing well enough to receive awed praise.

he felt imensely grateful towards whoever this divine dragon was because he seemed to the center of mount hua's revival.

tang bo idly wondered if chung myung was berating him in the afterlife. he asked him to take care of tang bo's family, but couldn't offer the same for his sect, he imagined that the other man would just exaggeratedly roll his eyes and tell him to start doing better then, you bastard.

and so tang bo, for the first time in a decade, knowingly chose to leave his room and approach his second-life father first.

thirty years was a long enough period to mourn, even if his heart still aches with regret.

but tang bo supposed supporting mount hua's divine dragon in the finals was a start.

[randaccidents]

I lost the post that sent me to this website but I've been making little CCCC things :3

Gotta love dabbling in the concept of not having a choice, being unable to back out of a question or a problem. Gotta love the concept of errors that you cant get rid of, that linger forever. Gotta love the mild horror of resetting the loop.

[scootarooni]

happy birthday queen 👑⭐

[daisyofwaterdeep]

Hi again!🥰 I really like Dammon/Rolan or m!Tav(preferably dragonborn)/Emp, and I do like smut... Maybe you could write something about exploring each other, sensual slow touching?..😌 (I also can write smth for you in return, if you wish😚)

I'm gonna go with the Dammon/Rolan, I haven't played a dragonborn yet or read up on them </3 (and I've had a little idea for the two of the tieflings that's been kicking around since I saw this ask hghghg) (this perhaps isn't as sexy as you had wanted, but my feelings got in the way and it evolved into...this. gomen ;o;) ____ Dammon seems more reserved than usual. He's always so quick to smile, always so eager to help. But now, on this most important day, the tiefling seems reserved, almost skittish. Rolan tries to not let it bother him, but it does. A great deal, in fact.

Rolan ponders the odd behavior as he watches Dammon set out his selection of armor across the table, meticulous as he is with all things. "Don't bother with the chainmail," Rolan comments over Dammon's shoulder, "It will only serve to slow me down. And it chafes something fierce." Dammon looks as if he's going to say something, his tail flicking back in forth and his shoulders tense, but he reluctantly relents and forgoes any heavy armor in his selection. When everything is finally on display, Dammon takes a step to the side, a small, tight smile and an accompanying gesture welcoming Rolan to peruse. "Is this all you have?" Rolan frowns as he comes forward, the four pieces of leather armor not giving him much to look at.

"It is," Dammon wrings his hands in front of himself, watching as Rolan picks up a well worn chest plate and inspects it, "Many been getting ready for the trip, so there's not much left." A weighted silence draws between them before Dammon clears his throat. "So you...Cal and Lia as well..." "Yes," Rolan doesn't wait for him to finish the fumbled question, "We are leaving."

"Yes," Dammon says on a laugh, but it's short and humorless, "Yes of course you are." He shakes his head, as if dislodging a pesky thought, "I suppose if anyone would be able to lead the tieflings to safety, it would be you." Rolan feels an ugly curl of annoyance heat his stomach and knows that his face reflects it. He can understand how impromptu this whole situation is, but sitting idly by isn't going to fix anything. The druids are going to kick them out--that is, if the goblins don't come to slaughter them all first. And yet so many still sit around twiddling their thumbs, as if an answer to their problems will fall miraculously into their laps. The fact that Dammon is amongst this group is a surprise to him. But on top of that, Dammon has the gall to doubt Rolan. It pisses him off. "Speak your mind, Dammon," Rolan sets the armor down and purses his lips as he fights to maintain an even tone, "You obviously have something more you wish to say." Pale blue eyes zip over Rolan's face, fall to the ground, then reluctantly return. Dammon swallows thickly and speaks carefully, slowly, quietly. "I'm just worried. Not just for you, but for all of us." The annoyance building in Rolan's gut fizzles out entirely. There's a tremble in Dammon's voice that makes Rolan ache-- the familiar feeling of uncertainty, of a fear so encompassing that it risks consuming everything if left unchecked.

Rolan takes a quiet moment to rein in the feeling before squaring his shoulders and stepping towards the other tiefling, bringing Dammon's face close to his own. "Come with us," He matches Dammon's low tone, trying to convey some sense of comfort, of confidence, "I'll protect you. I'll protect all of us." Dammon clearly still has more to say, but the words don't come. Instead, warm, calloused hands rest on Rolan's shoulders. The touch is surprising. Rolan and Dammon have always had an amicable sort of relationship-- nods across the grove, light-hearted chats, an undiscussed but not overlooked discount on weapons. Rolan doesn't believe they've ever touched, though, as casual as their companionship has been.

But as those blue eyes look into his own, something seems to click into place for Rolan. There has been something more, hasn't there? Looks that lingered for a beat too long, smiles that turned bashful, tones that could certainly be more than just friendly.

Rolan had been too wrapped up in everything around him that it hadn't occured to him until this very moment.

There's something between them. At some point, Dammon had become his friend. And at some point, those fond feelings had deepened, so naturally and innocuously that Rolan hadn't realized.

Rolan cares for this man. And the heavy, warm feeling of the hands on his shoulders is like a deep, gasping breath, the relief of an ache in his body that he had grown so accustomed to that the pain had stopped registering long ago.

"Dammon," Rolan says it on a soft breath, and it sends a shiver down his spine that tingles into a pleasant heat.

There's a light in Dammon's eyes at that, and those big hands roam down, feeling over the curve of Rolan's chest. Rolan's revelation must be written across his face, because Dammon looks over the moon-- just how long had he waited for Rolan to realize? Far too long, it seems.

There's privacy to consider, and general decorum, but Rolan's been plunged into something so profound that for the first time in his life, he's not worried about appearances. If any of his fellow tieflings are watching his hands grab Dammon's waist, he isn't aware. Nor is he aware of their reactions when he places his forehead against Dammon's, eyes rolling closed as their horns seem to slot perfectly between each other, as if they were made to hold each other close like this.

Two sets of hands roam, over backs, sides, chests, slow and with no purpose other than to feel-- there is an intimacy to it, and though there are warm pulses of arousal that light Rolan's senses, it's not the goal. This gentle exploration is a greeting into their new feelings, wordlessly saying that they are finally, finally on the same page. That the body they are feeling wants to belong to the other-- that it does belong to them, and that it has for a long time.

A distant cry breaks the reverie, however, and Rolan is snapped back to the reality at hand.

"Goblins at the gate!"

There's that ugly fear again, cutting through their shared warmth and collapsing them back into the real world.

But now, Rolan's resolve is able to trample that fear. He's going to protect those important to him-- no matter what it takes.

[dracallyart]

Share with us the lore behind Shieru and Orochimaru, please! I found your art through the latter's tag and they look so appealing together in a way that's hard for me to put words to. Old friends, perhaps?

Thanks for sharing!

AAAAAA!! Absolutely!! Thank you for giving me the opportunity to yap about these two hehe 🙏Also, thank you so much for finding them very appealing, you made my day!

I don't have their full story completely complete, as I only started working on it a few days ago and kept building on it as I went. As a warning; this will be LONG. The reason why is because Shieru and Orochimaru's story would be considered a slow-burn, due to Orochimaru needing a proper redemption arc and eventually receiving forgiveness.

-----

Some important things to note about my character before going on; Shieru is around the same age as the Sannin's, and is considered a very well respected veteran among Konoha. Having been kidnapped when she was young into Danzo's root, eventually escaping in her early twenties where she assisted Konoha during the Second Shinobi war, became a hermit for about a year or so after (due of her past trauma and actions) and returned with being able to summon the legendary bird she made a contract with and learned new, powerful jutsu. In her clan (the Fūrin clan, a fictional clan I made) she is considered the most powerful.

She's incredibly wise, is a sage without the official title and is incredibly knowledgeable on things relating to anthropology from life experiences.

Now! On to her and Orochimaru. (I will be referring to Orochimaru as they/them!) She is aware of everything they have done in the past, and have even affected negatively a student that she ends up rehabilitating back into Konoha. So, when Orochimaru is pardoned in Konoha due to assisting in the war efforts by saving Tsunade and even guiding Sasuke into assisting the village. Shieru begins to keep a close eye on the Sannin, and not long after they wander aimlessly around the village during the "Blank Period Episodes" she asks Kakashi, the current Hokage, to take Orochimaru to travel for around a year or so. As she wishes to see whether they had the ability to be properly redeemed. Due to her experiences as a veteran shinobi, she is allowed to as long as she is with Orochimaru at all times.

So, the two set off. Orochimaru asking why she would take them on a "leisurely jaunt" this way and Shieru would explain she's made a journey like this before, which changed her for the better, and wants to see whether that will do the same effect for Orochimaru. Of course, due to their circumstances, Orochimaru requires constant supervision and so they go on this journey.

Early during their travels, Shieru attempts to act professional and rigid with Orochimaru, often humbling from their acts of the past and occasionally snapping at them. Orochimaru meanwhile would act incredibly sly, teasing and equally as stubborn as Shieru in terms of their conversations. At some point, Orochimaru even begins nicknaming Shieru "Shi-Shi", which only grates her further.

Many points during their travel amongst different lands, Orochimaru finds themselves frozen as they recall a specific memory of certain events that have occurred to them in the past. Whether that be a specific hideout they had nearby, or even finding the spot where the "Three-Way-Deadlock" occurred where he nearly killed Jiraiya. At the beginning they put it aside, but little do they know all these memories begin to eat at them from the inside.

After a good long while into their travel, they've had their fair share of rogue ninja attempting to ambush them. One time, Orochimaru breaks the rule of no direct attack and assists Shieru in fending off some rogue ninja. They both end up working very well fighting together. And this specific incident is what causes Shieru to feel comfortable enough making fun of Orochimaru, she was never afraid of them to begin with. But she gives him the nickname "cornsnake" which causes Orochimaru to react at the slander, which eventually makes the two jab at one another in a more teasing, casual manner. It's around this time Shieru begins acting less professional and rigid with Orochimaru too, as they start having more and more conversations, albeit, it is still too early for Oro to talk too deeply over their thoughts.

MUCH more into their journey, Orochimaru begins to feel emotions they did not feel capable of feeling before. Some of them being shame, and regret. They at one point hurt Shieru's feelings with a statement so out of bounds, and at the beginning they feel nothing, but the abrupt change in Shieru's attitude makes the bubbling feeling of shame rise in their gut. So, a few nights later, they force themselves to apologise. Their apology makes Shieru have to stifle a laugh, and forgive them, which... surprises Orochimaru. But they move on, and it gives Oro much to think about.

The last half of their journey is a lot more eventful, Shieru eventually going the same route she went before on her journey from many, many years ago and telling Orochimaru about her adventures, and eventually opening up about what she got over in her trauma through this journey. Giving her plenty of quiet time to reflect. Though, she jokes due to her being here, Oro had little time to reflect. They disagree with her, but don't continue the thought. It's only through the course of a few more weeks and months that they begin to show frustration, regret and shame for what happened before. Shieru meanwhile is patient, open to hearing Orochimaru's thoughts on the manner, and offers her genuine opinion on certain things. And is, honestly forgiving as she comes to further understand Orochimaru in a deeper level, which does let Orochimaru express deep emotions he's not felt in years.

Through this journey, Orochimaru learns to (slowly) be a better person, and Shieru learns to forgive and further give belief that even those who are villainous by nature do so for a reason.

The drawing I made where they are going for drinks is the day that they return to Konoha, now as friends. And they go for drinks as a bit of a victory for their journey and Orochimaru's much more mellowed out personality. And redemption? They act like indeed old friends going for drinks that night.

And over time, the two do form a deep partnership, specifically once Orochimaru has made up for their past mistakes in a meaningful way, which surprises everyone, but Shieru pacifies Orochimaru in a good manner and does genuinely feel love for them, and Orochimaru treats Shieru incredibly well and feels equal amounts of love for Shieru. This occurs when they're back in Konoha and still continue to hang nearly every day, Orochimaru became accustomed to their presence and finds themselves restless without them around, and Shieru has come to find Orochimaru endearing and enjoys their company just as much.

This of course further mellows out Orochimaru to the point of Boruto! And of course, Shieru is basically Mitsuki's mom (merged their DNA into a petri dish LMAO).

-----

One reason I wished to make this ship is to further give explanation for Orochimaru's personality during Boruto. Since I do feel we're missing plenty context to why Orochimaru changed so drastically over the decade, I suppose when you've lived so long and have attained the immortality you wish, you do mellow out. But! I also personally love Orochimaru since the Blank Period Episodes, so I wanted to give this little ship a shot!

BUT! This is all of my thoughts! I definitely have more that I might have forgotten to mention, but I will most likely be drawing them a lot more and exploring their relationship further over time, since they've infested my brain since the day I made Shieru. Especially on their one year journey, a LOT can happen at that time, but I only have the template for what occurs.

Either way! Thank you so much for asking me about them!! Once again you made my day by asking that <333 I apologise if it was so long, but if you made it to this point, thank you for coming to my Ted Talk!

[tonydaddingham]

I mean Neil said once that the sequel involved Jesus arriving in America on a plane with secret service agents, and the S2 opening sequence shows a plane, so I'm... fairly confident that he's an adult? Jesus died when he was like 33 right

afternoon anon!!!✨ see i recall this (ask on neil's page?) and remember the response but cannot for the life of me find it anywhere (and im pretty good at Finding Stuff), do you - or anyone else reading for that matter - have a link to this? just so i can save it for future reference.

now, i hope you don't mind if i do this, but i would like to use this opportunity to parse out a more coherent rationale on the second coming, if that's okay? yeah? cool.

(previous incarnation of this theory).

thing is that the premise of the baby swap in s1 is based on the omen, right? takes at least a huge chunk of inspiration from that as the origin of how the antichrist came into the story. but it goes wrong, obviously, and there's a third baby thrown in the mix. makes a cursory wave to the omen, but isn't a carbon copy of it.

now i can't help but feel that narratively it would make sense to bookend this and have the second coming be a bit bollocksed up too. seems to be a theme in GO. and actually, when i thought about it (with extreme bias, granted, because im chomping at the bit on this theory), the second coming was potentially already fucked up anyway.

now, disclaimer time -

i completely get that people will look to the bible in reference to parsing out the second coming (or indeed any other theory). obviously i do too, for references to certain verses etc. in order to draw the relevant parallels. but there are multiple instances in GO where it is based on the bible or other texts, but doesn't follow it exactly; how GO portrayed the book of job, for example. it takes these texts, and distorts or reimagines them slightly or completely.

the way i see it, we are reading/watching GO as if this is in fact the true telling of those texts, as if (and not trying to be diminutive here) the bible is an inaccurate telling of GO, not the other way around - because, of course, we're seeing GO from the angel and demon that were 'actually there', so to speak.

im not saying that this - or any - of my theories are indisputably correct, far from it. but to me, with the information i have from the narrative as first source, and then looking at the referenced texts that inspired it, what i come up with, and write, is what makes sense to me. and it might make sense because it would be poetically apt, is in-keeping with how i interpret the characters, and/or is just plain funny or ironic (GO is after all, a comedy).

so whilst i fully anticipate people to duly correct me on how it all goes down in the bible (as they should, i love being educated!!!), please know that im not trying to deliberately misinterpret anything, but more trying to think outside the box, from the viewpoint of the GO story itself, and what direction would make the most sense in which it will reimagine these texts.

- exit disclaimer.

anyway! theory time!

so we have the imagery from the s2 sequence of the "thy kingdom come" plane, and this is obviously a reference to the resurrection as you've said, anon: that jesus arrives by plane. i truly love this imagery because if we take matthew 24:36 (KJV): "But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.", the concept that in the great plan the date and time might finally be revealed in the form of a flight number, airport, and ETA is frankly hilarious to me. furthermore, "cometh with clouds" (revelation, 1:7 KJV) being reimagined as a literal plane landing again sets up the comedic backdrop so well.

now wherever the plane lands, whether from the US or to the US (again, don't have the original neil answer to refer to, but going based on your ask, anon, it's the latter), it regardless involves americans. this is where i feel it would be a perfect narrative symmetry opportunity to refer back to s1/the book, and reintroduce the dowlings.

and you might be wondering, "well no because GO set up the dowlings to be involved only insomuch that they were meant to be custodians of the antichrist - why would they also be involved in the second coming?" well, i wondered this too. the only conclusion i can come to, frankly, is GO!god having a very warped, twisted and ineffable sense of humour. they saw what satan had planned for the dowlings in inadvertently raising the antichrist, possibly did a bit of shifting around in the mystical threads, and decided that actually - just to throw in the wildcard of chaos - they should instead be the bearers of the second coming. this degree of mind-boggling ineffability, to me, would be comedically on-brand.

regardless; whilst just a theory, the whole thing makes sense to me - that in any case, the dowlings are going to make a reappearance. and with them, or on his own (if we follow the biblical telling that jesus was resurrected as he was from the crucifixion, at age 33yo, and therefore would suggest a timeskip from s2, but this isn't necessarily guaranteed - ie: might not be how GO chooses to portray it!), comes warlock. now we know that warlock was meant to be the antichrist, before crowley and the nuns managed to bugger it all up.

but heaven wouldn't necessarily know that its the dowlings arriving, right? presumably they'd just all gather on the tarmac awaiting the arrival, and lmao SIKE, it's bloody warlock. heaven hasn't met warlock, and therefore still think he's in fact jesus resurrected... but aziraphale has met him. he helped bloody raise him. and he knows now that he is essentially a normal kid/adult (albeit a very stuck-up one) and definitely not the second coming.

well then, if jesus was meant to be on that plane, according to the great plan, a plane being used by the dowlings... then why isn't it warlock? well, because the dowlings' actual baby isn't warlock. lets go back to the baby swap in the book/s1:

*apols, editing to correct this somewhat because it isn't quite right and lateral thinking is not my strong suit*

ANTICHRIST was meant to go to: the DOWLINGS. instead, went to: the YOUNGS. this is Adam.

YOUNG BABY was meant to go to: stay with the YOUNGS, but got mixed up. instead, went to: the DOWLINGS. this is Warlock.

DOWLING BABY was meant to go to: adoption/something nefarious instead, and indeed did. this is... Greasy Johnson.

and i love this for all sorts of reasons. now im lifting this next bit, essentially, from another ask of mine, but to keep things all in one place:

"greasy is posed as the antithesis of adam/antichrist, has a gang surrounding him that you could infer are loyal disciples, and is a mirror to adam in that adam on the whole seems to be a well-adjusted and morally-upstanding young boy.

i further think the fact that adam is the antichrist put against greasy being the second coming is a well positioned reflection on the nature vs nurture argument. ultimately adam grew up in a largely loving and supportive environment, and as the literal son of satan, you'd expect his nature, the circumstances of his birth, to rule out every other influence.

ultimately it does for a short time, but adams narrative iirc is that it is reflective of his desire to save the world... he wanted to get rid of things that were Wrong, and naively (he is still an 11-year old boy after all) thought that destroying the world and restarting it would do just that. his friends however reinforce in him that destruction and reparation are not the same thing, and so his upbringing, the nurture, wins.

greasy? we don't know a lot about him, only that he is a bully and represents the opposite of adam and the them... [and there exists] the whole [sic] analogy that greasy and the johnsonites vs adam and the them are meant to represent the hell vs heaven war..."

and then we have this small, relatively innocuous detail from the book:

as i said, possibly something of nothing. but the deliberate wording of 'breeding the fish', which is left out of s1, is - i like to think - a bit of a clue.

and before anyone comes for me on this, i am aware that this is based practically on fuck all of jack shit; im painfully aware of that. im aware that it deliberately misinterprets certain passages (not going to do the soapbox speech again, promise), but i just like to have fun. i honestly do not care if this is wrong; whatever happens in s3 should and will be better than anything i can come up with. yes, it's fun to get a prediction or speculation correct, of course it is, but it's not the endgame here. i get that others will have conflicting schools of thought, see things differently, or just plain think it's crap - that's okay! but, if that's the case, just move on from this post with a shake of your head. im not here to do anything other than have a good time, lads (gn)✨💓

edit 21/08: additional reading because now i feel vindicated: here from amuseoffyre, and my tags on this post too.

[notreallyuseless]

Me: *having fun and laughing at Baghera and Cellbit killing people*

My brain out of nowhere: what would q!Phil think... how would he react if he saw his two teammates in this state. Would he feel guilt? Because he couldnt save them? Because he let them go down this murderous path? Would he feel anger? Towards the Watcher for pushing them to this extreme? Towards himself for not being there for them?

Would he wish he stayed there so that something like this didnt't happen to them.? Or would he wish he was there so that they wouldnt feel so alone?

[juiceshiru]

i absolutely adore spacea and tiempa ….

these two.. spacea and tiempa… used to be literal stars!!!! STARS IN THE SKY!!!!!!! two lonely stars (as spacea puts it !!!) watched down on earth and it’s inhabitants. They both took likings on two people:

Trinity and Stella.

tiempa absolutely adored trinity’s appreciation for time and how she lived her life to the fullest!! Trinity ,the playful girl, gave everything she could in life :] (she was the middle sister of 3)

and spacea took a liking on a girl named stella. A calm, polite, silent and scholarly girl!!! She balanced the personalities of her two sisters. (the youngest sister of 3)

These two lived at the kingdom in ghovora, which their older sister ruled: griselda!!!

they all lived happily until humanity killed arceus. Chaos roamed around the region, there was danger everywhere and people desperately wanted the archetype’s power. The Power arceus left behind. They wanted to save themselves, they wished to live, no matter the cost!!

This all led to griselda getting paranoid day by day.. she wanted peace more than anything, she wanted to protect her kingdom, her people, her sisters and most importantly her daughter!!! She loved them so much, she’d do anything for them…

which is why she teamed up with leisel and started sacrificing humans and pokemons to make crests

Crests made her army unstoppable. She broke off the alliance of the 7 kingdoms and started taking over the region. Why? Because if she took control over the entire land, she’d stop the pain and suffering all together!! No one could plot anything under her finger tips !! She’d stop it before they even happen !!If true peace is to be obtained, it will be through her.

thats where Variya comes in and offers both the sisters to be interceptors. She could give them the power to stop their sister from destroying the entire earth!!!

but they cant… both of them are afraid …and scared…they dont want to suffer anymore.. they want the pain to go away !! How could their older sister do something so cruel??? They couldn’t go up against her, they loved her… they just couldn’t …it’s too much for them!!!

So Variya offers both of them a deal: letting someone else do their job, beings that are not human will take over their body and do it for them…and they accept the deal.

Two stars fell down to earth and took over the bodies of stella and trinity….

Spacea and Tiempa were born. (And i assume they were the first interceptors to ever be, since variya was working all on this after arceus’ death and all 3 sisters lived in the same layer ..!)

They have the option on either saving the entire planet or damning it forever.. they choose to save it, because trinity and stella loved this earth so much. It meant a lot to them and was precious to both

the hags were doing it for the poor sisters, not for humanity, not for anybody … just for stella and trinity…

They build their own kingdom…and confront griselda one day. Griselda refuses to stop the war. So they result to the only thing… the death of their sister. They have to kill her.

So they team up with Griselda’s daughter (who has no name btw LMAO) and poison her… as she was dying, she saw the faces of her three beloved family.. why would they do something like this? Why would they betray her like this? All this war… and all the pain she has caused… it was all for them to be safe !! She just wanted the best for them….

This marks the end of an era

But whoops griselda turns into giratina (somehow) and starts thrashing and destroying everything in her path out of anger and hurt. She rips her daughter’s soul and locks it away

and spacea and tiempa, not wanting any more of this, lock her away to the distortion world!! By now, all the kingdoms were ruined and in shambles. So many have died….

they then volunteered to the overseer thing to help variya with whatever she needed, because hey….it was thanks to her that they got to save something so precious for stella and trinity ….they got to help the two people they liked the most..… and they got be humans …they just had to repay the ‘god’ of this world …and so they become the false gods we know as today (yay !!)

and then the plot happens and yeah…! So sad..

Also omg in paragon tiempa admits that she looks foward to finally dying !!! LIKE !!!! AUGHH ….she wants to die!?1?1!!1 hello!?!1??1

And…….. these two love each other very much and i love that ..i love sisters……

spacea mentions how tiempa was the only person to be ever with her from the very beginning..!!!!! She says how the status of this world doesn’t matter to her if her sister isn’t with her …!!! Even after her betrayal …she still looves her veryyyyy much …UAGHHH immmm gonna cry

[doughguts-art]

Comic of Bandit and a friend's fellow elsen with an X. Friend is Arc, who doesn't have a tumblr.

Their elsen boi's name is Michael. He dualweilds meat cleavers and is a bit of a bastard with em too. We joked it was karma Bandit took a hand, since in Michael's story, he lops off someone's jaw with the knives.

[the-monkey-ruler]

would you say macaque is something like a necessary evil in the novel?

I would say you are talking about the Six Eared Macaque right? There are a few Macaques in the story. I mean I wouldn't really say he is "necessary" as that isn't really the role he plays within the novel.

When I think "necessary evil" I think more like a force in society that is kept in order to keep the peace or to preserve other social forces that are considered more important to keep than to lose. A necessary evil is an evil that someone believes must be done or accepted because it is necessary to achieve a better outcome—especially because possible alternative courses of action or inaction are expected to be worse.

Which I do not believe the Six-Eared Macaque plays at all.

He is to play the role of the mirror to Sun Wukong. He is supposed to represent the absolute worse of what Wukong is capable of, not really being the opposite of Wukong but rather more of a foil to show Wukong what he could have been (I actually think another great foil character is Erlang Shen for different reasons). A version of Wukong that if he continued to be a warlord, continued to kill without regard for the value of life or consequences that the would turn into him.

The Six-Eared Macaque is not given a backstory so it's hard to say if they have similar backgrounds but rather it is that they are the same species and have the same drive that Wukong had at the start of the novel. Both being of immense power and, like Wukong, The Six Earred Macaque's greatest desire was to get fame and glory and to be recognized for it, despite the consequences.

Personally I believe that the Six-Eared Macaque was inspired by the Buddist saing “The dharma is not to be transmitted to the sixth ear" which means that there isn't a third person around to easdrop, usually between student and teacher. This is only used once when Wukong was speaking with Master Puti and this is where I think that the Six Earred Macaque learned the same skill that Wukong did.

Of course, this also means that he doesn't have a complete understanding. He would always be slightly off with his own teachings, always a step behind, and only be able to imitate what they were eavesdropping on as they were never told directly.

Kind of like how Wukong is supposed to be a master of transformation when he fought Erlang Shen and still lost the SIx Earred Macaque is supposed to discern and have knowledge but he is still just eavesdropping. He is never going to have the real thing.

Wukong is meant to represent Nothingness or emptiness, literally in his name meaning "Monkey Awakened to Emptiness" and how he and the Six Earred Macaque are meant to be of one mind but they are "two mind" that are fighting each other. One being one's natural impulsive thoughts and the other is the self-control people practice to think ahead. They are both inside a person's mind but only one can have full control of the body so to speak. I think a good western example of this would be like Ego vs ID but please don't take that as a one-to-one, it's not!

It is connected to how Wukong is the mind monkey and in order for him to reach his namesake that state of overcoming uncontrollable thought he needs to fight the worst version of himself, which is what I think the Six-Eared Macaque is supposed to represent. This actually goes with how I think Wukong and his connection with Bailong being the Horse of Will show how Wukong has gradually started to overcome his own thoughts and practice self-control though his dedicated willpower. (Bailong is an important allegory yet again.)

Long story short I think that the Six-Eared Macaque is to more represents Wukong's character growth. Rather than be a "necessary evil" he is another milestone to show that Wukong is about to look at the worst traits of himself and through fighting himself and wrestling with who he is, he is able to come to accept himself as well... and by defeating his doppelganger he shows that after battling himself he comes out the victor. Him moving on and changing throughout the journey shows him to be stronger and more sure of himself both mentally and spiritually.

[allthefoolishdreams]

reading my own fics because i am my own biggest fan ❤️ (jk i do not remember what lore i've included and need to see if what i've written flows with previous chapters)

[randomsataan]

Hi its me with another rant about chapter 7 of ofmd because im derranged

So i think its obvious to every one how stede and ed kinda flipped roles this last two episodes.

So i been thinking and do you all remember how in chapter 9 of the first season before stede leaves blackbeard badminton tells stede that he was the one who brought blackbeard to a ruin and that he defile beautiful things this making stede feel that he somehow fucked up blackbeard making him feel that ed would be better with out him?

I think that now ed is feeling that exact same way about stede. Like he thinks that stede killed ned in cold blood to avenge blackbeards name that action giving him infamy and turning him into a "real pirate" making him this new stede. In a way he feels like he has ruined him and that he needs to get away from him in order to not ruin him anymore. Also this and the fact that they where going to fast and that stede was starting to thrive in a lifestyle that ed wants to get away from because it was harming him.